New Beginnings
by Evil-Snow-Bear
Summary: Everything has settled down after the fall of Cocoon, everyones happy, except Hope. So he moves to Sullya Springs on his own, but just after a few months of peace, he gets a letter and an unlikely guest turning up on his doorstep.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own FF13, never will lets just get that clear.

Warnings: Fluff, Serah bashing (of course) Maybe Oocness( though I don't know where) Fang and Vanille not it crystal stasis.

A/N: Hey folks it's another SnowxHope story! I love this couple, I really, really do. Oh this is set before FF13-2. Light is still around :) I haven't played FF13-2, but I want to, I want to know who Noel is, he looks cool! And so I can make more pairing lol XD Anyway R&R and tell me what you think.

Oh and this is six months after the end of FF13, okay?

Enjoy!

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><p>Hope stared at the letter in his hands, wondering if he was reading right and double checked. Yeah, the letter hadn't changed but his mind still refused to comprehend what it said as truth. This couldn't be right, maybe Vanille had tripped and smacked her head on rock that made her hallucinate. Stranger things had happened, like her and Fang suddenly awakening from their slumber and arriving on Lightning's doorstep. That had indeed been a weird day and one he wasn't about to forget either; he had never seen Light blush so much. Still, this topped the list, no, this topped all records of strange happening in his life.<p>

Apparently Snow and Serah had split up.

Hope couldn't understand it so he shook his head and then re-read the letter, still nothing changed, the neatly scrawled words refused to change. But this couldn't be right, when they had woken up from destroying Orphan and saving the many occupants of Cocoon, he had seen how happy Snow and Serah had been to back in each others arms, he had seen the look of pure love and happiness in their eyes and on their faces that continued to burn brightly even weeks after they had been reunited, it was one of the reasons he moved out of Oerba and into Sulyya Springs, the other reason being he just wanted some time to grieve for his lost family.

Seeing the happiness shining in everyones eyes day in, day out as they hugged family members hurt him to the core, knowing he was just an orphan and while his friends had tried to include him in the most trivial of things, he couldn't help but miss his fathers stern gaze when he did something naughty or his mothers warm, loving embrace when he did something that made her proud and so he packed up his stuff, a few building supplies and his trusty boomerang and headed for Taejin's Tower in the middle of the night. He had known that if he waited till morning, he wouldn't have gotten anywhere.

Even now when he was practically living in his own small hut on an outcrop of rock, the sound of the waterfall a soothing noise in the background, he could never truly get away from people. Vanille visited often, once a week if she could, if not she wrote letters. Fang was often dragged to visit by Lightning who brought him clothes, blankets for when it got chilly and any food he needed. She really was like a second mom to him, but her visits were only once a month. Sazh visited probably more than anyone, two or three times a week. Apparently Choco missed kwehing at him, and he liked the Chocobo's presence, Dajh liked him too, chattering happily about what he learned at school. Even the NORA members visited him, though he barely knows why, he had only met them briefly at the seige of Eden, and it was brief. However he couldn't complain watching Lebreau threaten Gadot was very entertaining especially when the big man refused to give in.

The only people who didn't visit him was Snow and Serah. Lightnings sister he could understand, she had never met him, only a glance here or a 'hello' there before she was distracted or busy, she had no real reason to want to visit him. Though Snow... Snow had no excuse and no matter how much Hope tried to deny it, it hurt to think that the blond had forgotten him.

Hope sighed and ran a hand through his hair, knowing thinking about Snow wasn't helping his present confusion or the pain in his chest that twisted ever tighter when just the thought of Snow forgetting him, or didn't want him as a friend anymore.

_Knock, knock, knock._

Hope looked towards the door, a frown marring his features and making him look like a Lightning mini-me. The knocks sounded again and Hope was instantly curious, it was quite late at night and no one left Oerba at this time in fear of being eaten by monsters. Dropping the letter to the bed, he picked up his weapon, ready to use it at any moment. His fingers inched, like they were trying desperately to cast magic though he knew that was impossible, he was no longer an l'Cie.

The knocks came again and Hope crept towards the door, steeling himself with a deep breath as he swung the door open, his boomerang poised ready behind his back. Though it dropped uselessly to the floor and his eyes widened in suprised as he gaped and sputtered over his words.

"S-snow?" The blond grinned, though it was a little sloppy, like he hadn't smiled in ages, years even. He leaned heavily against the doorframe, his fist ready to knock again. His hair was still half hidden by the black bandana, his long silver trench coat was matted with monster blood, his black gloves dripped the stuff causing Hope to wrinkle his nose slightly. However, despite the normal look Snow wore, he looked...terrible. His eyes were bloodshot and puffy like he had been crying though no trace was found on his face, he looked exhuasted as if he had been fighting Orphan all over again. He continued to stare stupidly until something his mother used to say flash into his mind _' Hope we have a guest that is upset, what do we do?'_ And he would reply with; _' We invite them in, listen to their troubles and give them a hot beverage, and we make sure we do this with a smile.'_ Hope jerked, remembering the countless times his mother had opened the front door to a distressed neighbor and invited them in with her famous soft smile. He opened the door further and tugged Snow in, ignoring how Snow's boots tracked dirt in. He would clean it up later.

He pushed Snow towards the little couch Vanille had some poor souls deliver to his house and left the blond there while he filled the kettle up on put it on the open fire he had as a cooker. While a lot had been saved from Cocoon, there were still things they had to go with out, an electric or gas cooker was one, TV was another. Many of Pulse's machinery was still being found and even then it took ages to figure what it was for and how the Hell they were suppose to use it. It was slow progress.

He walked back into the living room, noticing how Snow just sat there, looking at his hands like they had some mysterious stain on them and he was trying to figure out how to get it off. Hope felt sympathy for the man, pushing aside his own hurt at the man. He could question the man later, right now the blond needed a friend and he had obviously come to Hope.

In a matter of minutes, Hope had made hot drinks and brought it into the living room, giving Snow a strong cup of coffee to help the man along while he stuck to something with less caffine. It wasn't that he didn't like coffee, it just tended to make him a little...Well, okay he acted as if he had drunk a six pack to himself, it gave him the same affects as alcohol. He would always wake up the next morning with a pounding head and he barely remembered what happened.

Hope shook his head, he was running away with his thoughts and he had Snow sitting on his couch looking as if he had lost everything. So Hope plastered a smile on his face and spoke.

"How have you been Snow?" The blond sipped silently at his drink, the big grin that had been on his face moments before was now gone and replaced with a grimace. Snow shrugged.

"Alright. I guess you heard about me and Serah?" Hope nodded, sipping his tea and waited for the blond to continue, but all he got was a depressed chuckle. This confused him and he glanced up, swallowing when he found Snow glaring accusingly at him.

"You left without a word. Why? I've been asking Light but all she ever did was bitch at me. Sazh was more help than a dead body and Vanille refused to say what was wrong and instead poked me until I stopped asking." Hope gulped past the large lump in his throat and looked away, he shrugged one shoulder wondering why Snow had turned this on him.

"I just...Why did you and Serah break up? You both looked so happy." Hope breathed a sigh of relief when Snow took the distraction and gulped his coffee, wincing when the hot liquid burnt his tongue. Snow laughed suddenly, and Hope shivered. The laugh had been empty, hollow with no feeling except sadness and a little anger. The silverette felt pure hate flare in his chest, while his and Snow's relationship as friends had been strained at the best of times, he hated the idea of the normally cheerful bulk of man ever being sad and hurt, it just didn't seem to suit the other what-so-ever.

"She got jealous. She said she felt like she could never compare to you, like she was my second lover. Said she didn't like the fact that I kept asking after you, and always worrying where you were. She left after I laughed at her and said that you and I were just friends, that she was just paranoid. Funny enough, Light agreed with me, though it didn't stop her from punching me." Now that Hope looked closely, he could see a dark bruise over Snow's cheek bone, though he blushed when he realised that Serah had accused them of having a fling. He cleared his throat awkwardly as he was still embarrassed over the fact that Serah had really thought that him and Snow were more than friends.

Snow turned to him, a small grin on his face, looking a little more like his normal self. "You wanna know something funny?" Hope nodded, his silver brows furrowing when Snow chuckled, though this was much more light hearted. "I wasn't even upset when we broke up and she kicked me out...I just felt relieved. Is that wrong of me Hope?" Hope stared at him for a moment and noticed that Snow did look as if he had a ton of weight lifted off his shoulders, though he still looked terrible. But is feeling relieved after breaking up with someone who was suppose to be the love of you life wrong? Hope would have to answer yes, but he had noticed that while Serah had been accepting of Snow's personality, she still tried to change him in small ways. Like how she kept asking him not to wear is bandana, to dress a little more appropriately instead of just his normal outfit, which was just wrong, if you loved someone, you loved them for who they were. Though Hope had to admit that Snow looked awkward in a turtle neck.

Hope snickered under his breath at the memory but focused back on the question and shook his head, smiling brightly. "Of course not, Snow. Why should you feel guilty when it was her that was making you unhappy?" However, this didn't explain why Snow looked like he had bawled his eyes out for days on end but Hope didn't have the heart to question the blond about it, and instead stared into his luke warm tea. They sat there for a few minutes, Hope wondering if he had gotten away with not answering Snow's earlier question, but the blond wasn't that stupid and repeated the question and Hope knew he had no choice but to answer. After all, Snow had answered his. It was only fair. _'How can I explain it without sounding insensitive?'_ Hope wondered to himself while Snow stared at him obviously waiting for an answer. In the end Hope shrugged and answered as honestly as he could.

"I guess I just wanted some time on my own. Everyone was so happy, I felt as if I was ruining all that- mmph!" Hope blinked when he found himself pressed against Snow's chest, luckily missing the monster gore covering the other man. Snow was hugging him tightly, crushing the air from his lungs but Hope couldn't complain, it had been a long time since he'd be hugged. Everyone tended to give him pats on the shoulder, or in Light's case, a stiff nod. Hope absorbed the warmth from the other, pondering the fact that despite being covered in monster blood, Snow oddly smelt of lavender and coffee.

"You daft- How could you think that you was ruining our happiness?" Snow asked, sounding mystified but also annoyed at the fact that Hope could think such a ridiculous thing. Hope shrugged.

"You said yourself that Serah broke up with you because you worried too much about me- ow!" Hope frowned, rubbing his arm where Snow had punched him a little to hard. The usually cheeful blond was glaring at him, his blue eyes seeming to glow in the dim light set by the candles. Hope blinked.

"That was because you_ disappeared_. If you had stayed in Oerba, I wouldn't have worried. Stupid." Hope slumped, Snow unfortunately had a point.

"Sorry." Snow sighed and pulled Hope in for another hug, they fell into another silence though this one wasn't awkward. It was a few minutes later Hope yawned and blinked a few times, making Snow want to coo at the cuteness.

"C'mon, into bed Hope. It's late." Hope frowned, a stubborn look passing over his face before he sighed and nodded. He muttered that Snow could sleep on the couch as he wandered into the little bedroom to grab some extra blankets that Light had brought.

Hope blushed as he wandered in on Snow shedding his vest, watching as the muscles in Snows back flexed with the movement. He gaped for several moments before he shook his head and cleared his throat, a trembling hand holding out the blankets and a spare pillow he had picked up from his bed. Snow smiled in thanks before flopping length ways onto the couch, draping the blankets haphazardly on top of him. Hope stood staring at the back of the couch and then realised he was suppose to be going to bed.

"Night Snow." He muttered from the doorway to his room and heard snoring as his reply. Snickering under his breath, he shut the door and the proceeded to flop on his bed and rub his still flushed face. _'What in the world has gotten into me! It's not like the first time I've seen him with only pants on!'_

He lay there for a few minutes, wondering back on why he had reacted the way he did, why he had felt hurt when Snow hadn't visited him and when he realised why, it felt like Hope had been hit by Barthandelus's Ultima again.

_'I-I have a crush on Snow!'_

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><p>AN: Dun, Dun DUUUUUUUUN. Yeah first chapter, it's okay, personally I tried to make it better but, well... Review and tell me what you think, okay?


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer thingy: Me do not own Snow, Hope or any other character belonging to FF13, never have, never will. I just use them to right fluffy fanfictions about.

Warnings thingy: Light bashing, Serah bashing. Hope maybe a bit Ooc. Maybe a little of bad language but not much. And a bit fluff, cos we all need that in the world.

A/N: Hey! Nothing to report except I've been on a writing spree. I'm on fire! XD

Like chapter one and chapter were wrote a day apart! Other than that it's been mostly boring and tweaking this chapter here and there. Anyway, read and Review and let know what you think!

Enjoyies!

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><p>"Snow! Wake up!" Snow groaned, pressing his face deeper into the pillow that smelled of wild violets and something sweet as he tried to go back to sleep. A hand grabbed his shoulder and shook, though it wasn't rough like when Lightning did it, it was gentle, coaxing him to listen to the unknown voice and wake up instead of going deeper into the dark abyss of slumber.<p>

Though the voice couldn't belong to Light, it might have belonged to Vanille though it sounded a bit deeper than normal. He knew it couldn't have been Serah's voice as hers was a light, sweet sound that had begun to grate on his nerves and wouldn't have made him feel relaxed, content, _safe_. Not that she would have been speaking to him, they had broke up after the tenth- or was it twentieth?- arguement about him obsessing over a certain silver haired teen and his where-abouts.

Hope.

Snow groaned, realising who was calling him, of course how could he forget? After being kicked out by Serah, and punched in the face by Light, he had stumbled towards Vanilles house and practically begged the girl to tell him where Hope was. She had stuttered over her words, making excuses until in the end she told him that for the past six months or so Hope had been living in Sulyya Springs on his own.

He had been pissed that Light or none of the others had told him, he had been hurt over whatever reason that had made Hope leave, the other hadn't come to him first. So he decided, if Hope wasn't going to come to him, he would go to Hope. He had caught the lift to Taejin's Tower, fighting whatever Cie'th had gotten in his way until he made it to the lift to take him straight to the bottom. He had quite boredly fought his way to the entrance of Sulyya Springs and had stopped, though even now he wasn't quite sure why, something in him, maybe his conscious had asked why he was doing all this for Hope. The boy was his friend sure, but it was like he was fighting again, fighting for a cause like saving Cocoon, like defeating Orphan, like protecting Hope and make sure the teen knew he was loved. With the last reason in is mind he had carried on until he had found himself in front of a little hut with a little chimney that puffed out smoke. The hut could have been called cabin, made of logs rolled together, with a wooden door and wood framed window with shutters. It was cute and blended in with rocks perfectly. Hope had done a real good job in building his own house, but then Hope had always been good at that sort of stuff, whether it was building fires or finding food, no one had to worry about Hope not being able to look after himself if he got lost.

And here he was, curled up on Hope's couch feeling happier than he had for ages. Hearing Hope call his name again, he grinned and rolled over suddenly, grabbing Hope and pulling him onto the couch, chuckling at the squeak of surprise Hope gave while he sighed and settled back down to sleep.

Hope frowned, though there was a blush on his face. He hadn't expected Snow to grab him like that and now he was staring at a firm chest, Snow's breath tickling his hairline everytime he breathed. Hope pushed to get away but Snow refused to budge, tightening his arms just a little. Hope huffed.

"Snow, let me go, please?"

"..." No answer though Hope knew the other man was awake, so he pushed again only harder and managed to create a little room between them so he wasn't smushed against the others chest, even if it was a very nice chest. He looked up at Snow's face, noticing that he had gained a five o'clock shadow. He had a sudden urge to stroke Snow's jaw just feel the stubble tickle his fingers but with held himself. Besides freaking out Snow with such an intimate touch, Hope would have been extremely embarrassed about doing such a thing. Instead he pinched Snow's unbruised cheek. The man jolted at the twinge of pain, causing both of them to fall from the couch and land on the floor in a heap, Hope unfortunately being crushed by the other man.

"Snow...get off!" Hope pushed Snow to the side, heaving in a gulp of air and glaring at Snow who lay there on his back, arms behind his head and his eyes closed as if he was resting on the most comfiest bed imaginable and not the hard rock floor of Sulyya Springs. Hope huffed, annoyed and stood up, leaving Snow there who watched him closely before closing his eyes again.

Hope came back a few minutes later to see Snow sitting on the couch, tying the laces on his boots which made the teen wonder when the older man had took them off. Shaking his head Hope ignored the fluttering inside his stomach that seemed to be determind to stay ever since he realised his...crush.

"Hey Hope, so what are we doing today?" Snow looked at him, noticing the confused look on the others face. Snow thought he should make himself useful while staying at Hope's, it wasn't like he was going to chill out watching Hope do all the work.

"Um, it's a saturday so I usually go out and pick fruit. You can stay here and have-" Hope was cut of when Snow stood and nodded his head, grabbing the wicker basket Hope was carrying and walked towards the door, opening it and waiting for Hope to go through first. Hope was a little confused but shrugged it off, Snow would be a great help anyway. Often monsters lurked round the fruit trees and sometimes, though he hated to admit it, Hope got scared about facing them on his own. It wasn't like if he got hurt he could fall back on any of the others to help cover him while he saw to his wound. He was on his own and if he got hurt, then he would have to deal with it. Mind you, he'd only ever got wounded once and that was enough for Hope, he had been petrified as he felt the claws of a lupine monster rip through his jacket and catch his side, though he had been able to gather enough courage to swing his boomerang at the monster and daze it long enough for him to grab his basket and run.

Snow was watching Hope closely, and noticed how his bright green eyes glazed over before every muscle in the teens body tensed and he paled. '_I wonder what he's thinking about?'_ He gently placed a hand on Hope's shoulder, feeling the other jump and those green eyes turned to him, hints of fear glowing bright within them. Snow was instantly concerned.

"Hope? Are you okay?" Hope coughed, relaxing under the hand on his shoulder when he realised it was just Snow and not some lupine monster trying to claw him to pieces. He nodded his head and gently shrugged off Snow's hand, berating himself for actually getting that worked up that he lost himself in his fear.

Snow didn't say anything else and soon Snow was leaning on his tip toes to pull some apples off a high branch, the basket was already half full with some ripe bananas, a handful of blackberries and now some apples. He threw one he had managed wiggle lose from the branch and watched as Hope caught it effortlessly and place it in the basket gently, just in case a run away blackberry was underneath. He turned back to his job at hand, tossing apples over his shoulder and hearing Hope catch them, though he frowned when he heard an apple hit the ground. He turned round, ready to joke about Hope dropping one when he found that the teen was no where to be seen. Frowning deeper, he walked over to the basket and dropped the rest of the apples into it. He looked round, wondering where Hope could have got to, getting more and more concerned when he heard a cry.

Instantly Snow was running towards the sound to an outcrop through the rock, what he saw made his heart stop but his blood boil.

Hope clutched at the wound on his arm, feeling like a fool for leaving Snow and wandering off when he heard a noise, like metal scraping on rock. He felt blood leak past his fingers and he stared ata Sahagin that watched him, prowling closer when the monster noticed his wound. Hope felt the same spine chilling fear creep into his bones and squeezed his eyes shut when he saw the fish like monster raise a clawed hand. He waited for the pain but all he heard was the sound of bone crunching sickly and the sound of skin meeting the leathery hide of the Sahagin. Hope opened his eyes, only for them to widen when he saw Snow lifting his hand from the Sahagins now crushed skull. It was only when Snow dropped next to him that Hope noticed his was crying, and by the sounds of his gasping breaths having a mild panic attack at the same time.

Snow was furious and extremely worried at the same time, though he still pulled the obviously terrified ex-l'Cie into his arms, holding Hope close, trying to calm him down. He felt Hope clutch at his vest with a death grip, as if the other was afraid he'd disappear. This was why Snow wasn't happy when he found out Hope was living on his own, sure he could understand the others need for independance but outside the safe borders of Oerba, it was dangerous for one to be on their own, and Hope was still just a teen.

"Shh, it's okay Hope. You're safe. Your hero is here." Snow had no idea why he said the last thing but he didn't dwell on it as it worked to calm Hope down, he rubbed the others back before pulling Hope away from him so he could look at the wound on Hope's arm. It wasn't deep and the bleeding had stopped, though it still needed to be cleaned and bandaged up. Eden only knows where the claws of that Sahagin had been. He pulled Hope to his feet, wrapping an arm round the other shoulders and walked back towards the fruit trees to pick up the basket before heading back to Hope's hut.

Hope was quiet, still clutching at Snows vest and refused to let go. He felt embarrassed that he had been so weak as to actually get scared by a Sahagin. He let Snow push him onto the couch and then he blinked, watching as Snow disappeared to look for water and bandages. Hope looked down at his arm, wanting to pick at the dried blood like a child. He stared at it trying to see if it would scar or not, and it was only when he heard Snow shouting that he realised that he had a visitor.

Hope frowned at the pure anger in Snow's voice, though he couldn't hear the other person say anything in return. He winced when it seemed that the blond was getting angrier because he had begun to swear which was unsual for Snow. He walked over to the door Snow had gone through and found Lightning leaning against one of his counters, Snow standing intimidatingly over her as he glared pure hate at her. Hope found he was lost for words and could only listen.

"Again, _Claire_. Why the bloody Hell did you leave Hope out here on his own? Why didn't you tell me he was here on his own?" Snow leaned back, running a hand through his hair as if to defuse some of his anger, though the glare remained in full force. Light snorted crossing her arms over her chest.

"Hope's fifteen, Snow. He can look after himself. Right Hope?" Hope shifted when two pairs of eyes stared at him. He wanted to agree with her, he could look after himself, but then again, it was nice to know someone was watching his back just in case he slipped up. He couldn't deny the fact that if Snow wasn't with him today, he would've died and no one would have found him. So he shrugged, wincing when the action pulled against the cut on his arm.

"Maybe...Maybe it would be nice to know someones watching my back if I mess up." Hope glanced up at Light who was frowning, before she huffed, waving her hand dismissively.

"Then you should've stayed in Oerba-"

"You cold hearted bitch!" Snow roared, grabbing Light by the arm and shaking her, shouting more profanities at her while Hope stood there, blinking. He felt oddly numb and his eyes burned but he knew he wasn't crying. He felt like he should be though, he knew Light had troubles with her emotions but he had always thought she understood him. He guessed wrong. Light snarled, landing a sharp blow to Snow's sternum with her elbow and stormed past both of them, calling over her shoulder to say there was some food and extra blankets in Hope's bedroom before slamming the door behind her.

Snow gasped, breathing heavily. He straightened his back and began to mutter, pacing round the small room as if wearing a line in the rock would help. Hope sighed though he noticed how it shuddered as he was trying hard to sob his heart out. He stood there for a minute until he spoke up.

"I'm... I'm going to bed." He ignored how Snow called after him and walked to his room, shutting the door behind him and stared at the food placed on his bed. He moved it all to the floor and then laid back on his bed, staring at the wooden ceiling. It was an hour later that Snow knocked on his door, disturbing him from his thoughts. He called for the blond to come and noticed that Snow had found the bandages.

"Sit up so I can clean your wound. Don't want it to get infected now do we?" Snow mused, trying to sound carefree like he normally did but it just sounded bitter. Still Hope did as his told and sat there while warm water was dabbed onto his cut, cleaning away the dried blood, though he winced when the cloth used caught one of the scabs covering the wound. Snow muttered an apology before deeming the wound clean and started to wrap a long piece of clean cloth over it.

When that was said and done, they sat quietly. Hope running away with his thoughts, trying to figure out what he had done to upset Light. Snow was wondering how he could convince Hope to go back to Oerba, or at least move closer to it without sounding like he was on Lights side, because he certainly wasn't. Right then when he had told Light that Hope had been wounded, she had simply shrugged and looked at him as if she was confused as to why it was important. Seeing that cold, uncaring gaze had flipped some switch in his head and he had lost it

"Snow, do you think I should move back to Oerba?" Hope was looking at him with dull green eyes that shimmered with such sadness that it broke Snow's heart, so he pulled the boy in a tight hug, resting his chin on top of Hope's silky hair.

"The choice is yours Hope, but just know that I'm staying for as long as you'll let me. Whether it's here, Oerba or freaking Vallis Media. I'm not leaving unless you tell me to go." Snow spoke the truth and he knew Hope knew it too. The blond was stubborn and when he said he was going to do something, he stuck to it. Just like he promised to save Serah and Cocoon and that was proof enough. He would never leave Hope unless the other told him to, and even then Hope would have to have a pretty good arguement.

"Thanks, Snow. C'mon I'll make us something to eat, I'm starving."

That statement was followed by two stomachs growling loudly and laughter.

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><p>AN: Another chapter done. I don't know why I made Light a bad person but it just seemed to fit. Yeah, lack of Hope having a crush, but he's _stubborn!_ He'll refuse it for a while and then he'll accept it XD So anyway, let me know what you think and review! x


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Me obviously don't own because if I did, I would personally kill Barthandelus's owl, Seriously, that's where all his power is! Snow would me mine, all mine, Lightning would be my kick ass body guard and I would have the most of the Eidoliths as my pets, except Alexander 'cos I don't think he'd fit in my house or garden for that matter :/ hmm..

Warnings: Fluff, slight bashing of Light, Serah, Sazh, Vanille and Fang, maybe an Ooc Hope, depends which way you're looking.

A/N: Hey another chapter, whoot whoot. Oh just completed FF13-2, tis awesome and I can't wait to see if there's a sequel to it too. And just to say, this has nothing to do with that plot either, as you probably know but I have keep telling myself or I'd get confused lol. Too many plot bunnies charging around my head XD. Read and Review and tell me what you think :)

Enjoy!

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><p>For the second time in the past few days Hope found himself staring at a sleeping, snoring Snow who was sprawled out over the small two seater couch, his feet hanging over the arm. Try as he might, Hope couldn't help but find the scene somewhat endearing as he sipped his early morning cup of tea. Well, his fifth cup actually. He had woken up at the ungodly hour of four am with thoughts of Lightning and her behaviour from the day before rushing through his mind. He was still a little hurt at her attitude but now he was mostly annoyed and wanting answers. She had never been that abrupt before nor has she ever sounded so cold. Maybe it had been because of Snow? The thought had passed Hopes mind many times, and the more he pondered it, the more he began to believe it.<p>

Lightning had never been the emotional type, but she had always given him a concerned look if she noticed a scratch or a bruise on him, she would give the lecture of staying safe and if he needed anything, he was to send a message to her immediately. But at the sight of Snow, she turned colder than the Shiva Sisters Diamond Dust. Was Lightning really that angry at Snow for splitting up with Serah? Or was it because of how angry Snow had been at _her_ for not telling the blond where he lived?

Hope sighed heavily, those questions had been floating around too. Lightning may have given Snow and Serah her blessing, but Hope had always been able to see the displeasure in her eyes whenever the two wasn't looking. Maybe she had never gotten over her dislike for Snow? Maybe she blamed Snow for something. Either way, Hope had no idea and it bugged him to no end. However it still raised the case of why everyone refused to tell Snow where he lived. He was shocked to learn that even Vanille had refused to tell Snow where he lived, the pinkette was notorious for her bad habit of spilling secrets, like when Fang had accidently broke Lightning's favourite mug, something the soldier was strangely fond of, and swore Vanille to secrecy, it had taken the Pulsian five minutes to spill the beans to Lightning who had charged after Fang with her gunblade glinting in the sun and chasing the dark haired Pulsian for hours until Fang shouted for mercy.

She didn't get it.

Hope remembered being called to treat Fangs bruises and cuts, the tanned woman had simply chuckled the whole time, her dark eyes glinting with the promise of revenge at the stoic woman.

Hope was jerked from his thoughts when a thud was heard and a loud groan sounded through the small room from the direction of the couch. Hope glanced down when he noticed that Snow was no longer sleeping and was it fact slumped on the floor, still snoring lightly, even as a bruise blossomed over the side of his forehead where he had hit it on the ground. Hope couldn't help but laugh, the man could have a possible concussion and still the blond sleeps peacefully.

Feeling that he should probably see to that bruise, Hope placed his cup down on the little rickety end table by the door and knelt over Snow to shake him awake, though he was wary after what happened last time.

Hope laid his hand on Snow's shoulder, trying his best not to ogle the sheer muscle mass the older man had. While he had grown a little while off on his adventures as l'Cie, Hope had gained an almost feminine curve to his body, which was embarrassing. It came to something when cute little Vanille looked more manly then he did.

"Snow? C'mon wake up, you've just bashed- eep!" Hope blushed at the mouse like squeak escaping him as he found himself once again smushed against Snow's chest, breathing in the musky scent on the man before him. The silverette sighed and this time relaxed instead of trying to escape. He hated to admit it, but the soothing, rythmic sound of Snows heartbeat was seriously making him sleepy and he felt his eye lids droop unwillingly.

Snow lay as still as could, a sneaky smirk curling his lips when Hope's breathing evened out as the kid clocked out for a while. He had heard the other get up at four am, being l'Cie and always ready for danger never leaving him even after six months. He had thought at first Hope was getting up to get a drink of water but after a couple of minutes of listening to Hope clean the dishes from the day before, Snow had frowned but had found himself falling back to sleep, Hopes unconscious humming filling his ears. Then he had fell off the couch, hitting his head on the floor and realised that Hope was still awake, so he devised a plan and pretended to sleep like his skull wasn't pounding like a behemoth was bashing against it. The other had foolishly fell for the trick and Snow found the little squeaks Hope gave rather adorable. Now Hope was asleep on his chest, curling against his side.

Snow felt as if he had just saved Cocoon again, he felt happy that he was helping, even if that meant being a pillow. He was happy being Hopes pillow/hero. He had thought once that only Serah would need him as her hero, but that had changed when Hope had disappeared from Oerba and his life seemed to ground to a halt. Not even Serah's sweet words could distract him from the fact that Hope was gone, Hope wasn't there anymore. _Hope was on his own!_ He had literally panicked for half a second until he noticed no body else panicking and calmed some, but now he knew he could never leave Hope on his own again.

Not outside this hut anyway.

People just seemed to forget that Hope was a teenager, they just assumed that because he was a l'Cie he could look after himself. Hope had lost both his parents in tragic accidents, one mostly the blonds fault. Nora had died on Hanging Edge, fighting for their freedom, fighting for Hope, and protecting Snow like a true mother would even though they had only just met. Bartholomew had died in Eden, the Cavalry had been spread thin after Rygdea's ambush on Raines, and Hope's father had heard of his sons where-abouts. Bartholomew had rushed out to see his son one last time but got caught in the cross-fire of Sanctum and a Pulse Juggernaught. Nevertheless, Hope had took responsibility of everyone else first, helping them rebuild their lives in Oerba, never taking time for himself until everything was said and done and the silver haired teen found himself watching from the side lines as everyone else was happy. It was then the grief, the pain of losing his family and the knowledge that while Lightning and Sazh had got their family back, Hope had lost his hit him and hit him hard.

Snow knew Hope was strong, the kid had seen and experienced more in his life than the eighty-two year old man who made figurines could ever hope to. He wouldn't be surprised if Hope had turned angsty on them, hell, even fall into a state of depression. But no, Hope had packed his bags and moved to Sulyya, where he lived somewhat happily.

Hope was definitely strong.

Snow gently shifted round until he had the sleeping teen in his arms, Hope's head resting against his shoulder. He carefully placed the teen on the couch, watching with fondness as Hopes brows furrowed and he let out a moan of protest when Snow went to move away. Snow found himself stuck as Hope subconsciously gripped on to leg of his trousers, refusing like a stubborn child to let go.

It was then, while trying to free himself, Snow noticed that Hopes sleeping shirt had rode up, allowing him to see the three thin pink scars marring Hopes left side, they were only a couple of inches long but that wasn't what Snow was bothered about. The fact Hope had them at all was what bothered him. It reminded him of how Hope had been after getting that scratch from the Sahagin, a weak monster like that shouldn't have bothered Hope at all. Instead it had terrified the teen, and now Snow knew why. Why Hope hadn't sided with Lightning and fought for his independence.

Hope had been hurt and there had been no one to comfort him, to watch his back.

Snow growled, feeling anger rumble in his chest, if he had any doubts about staying before, he certainly didn't now. He was staying and that was that. Gently prying Hopes fringers from his trousers, Snow went in search of paper and a pen, needing to write an important letter and send it off as soon as possible. There was a few things he needed to say to a couple of people...

"...Hope has three scars on his side, I don't know how he got them, I haven't asked yet but if any of you had bothered to truly ask if Hope was okay and honestly look at Hope, you would have noticed that he wasn't all right. He needs his friends- no his _family_ to show him that he's not alone. And you all failed..." Vanille choked back a sob, unable to read the rest out loud. The room was silent, even Choco was oddly subdued, the little chick resting sadly on Sazh's hair. Everyone had a stunned look on their faces at having the brutal truth shown to them through a simple letter. Snow had mentioned the Sahagin attack in detail and how Hope had reacted, had said clearly how Hope may act happy, but while you weren't looking his shoulders would slump just minutely, that at times he looked as if he had Cocoon itself weighing heavily on his shoulders.

Even Serah who hadn't really been part of the letter looked as if she was about to cry, her eyes wide and shimmering with tears. She had known Hope was an orphan but thought the other had been born like that, not that he had lost both his parents and it was all her fault! Lightning had gone pale, extremely pale. Her eyes had become blank and her fists were curled tightly, the only sign of her emotions. She was regretting her words the other night, regretting that she had not noticed sooner how Hope acted. Fang was at Vanilles side, hugging the younger tightly. Sazh had his head in his hands, while Dajh looked on whith a confused expression, not really understanding the situation.

"...Why didn't he say anything?" Everyone looked at Lightning who had finally spoke up, her voice devoid of it's usual hard edge. Her eyes glittered with unshed tears as she remembered the one month she had visited, Hope had seemed off, stiff and he had refused to turn his body fully, even taking his time to put the food and blankets away when he would have put them away quickly and in seconds. It was because of the three scars Hope now had, he had been hurt, in pain and not once did he mention that he was in pain, not once did his smile falter, and it was now Lightning realised that she had seen the signs and refused to truly see them for what they were.

She was ashamed that she had missed something so crucial, so important. And here she was worrying about Snow ruining Hopes happiness, getting the other hurt when he was in fact doing the exact oppisite. She had been angry when Snow had the nerve to shout at her but now she knew he had every right. She had thought it was his hero complex coming into play, now she knew it was because Snow had been generally worried about the other.

"We should probably apologise." Sazh looked at everyone, frowning when Fang shook her head, a sad chuckle escaping her.

"Hope wouldn't want, or accept that. Poor Snow would be dead if Hope found out that Snow sent us a letter explaining his weakness." There was truth to Fang's words. Vanille glanced up from the womans chest to sniff and speak.

"Then what should we do?" She asked, looking lost and wondering what they could do to prove to Hope that he had all their support.

No one answered her question...

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><p>AN: Yeah, best not to ask, but I was playing FF13-2 and I noticed that through out the game, Hope was always on the side lines, never really anyones focus. It's all Serah, Serah, _Serah._ Man, I dislike her so much. Anyway, sorry if I spoiled anything, just to repeat myself, this is no way involved with the plot of FF13-2, it is now freelance lol Read and Review and tell me what you think, please! I'll send you all hugs :)


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy 13.

Warnings: Nothing really.

A/N: Finally the chapter is finished! But credit has to go to EnTheOriginal on youtube because there is no way I would have got through my writers block withou them and their awesome remix's. Please R&R, it would be greatly appreciated and massive apologies to everyone who has been waiting for an update.

Enjoy!

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><p>"SNOW, I'M GONNA KILL YOU!"<p>

The door to Hope's cabin burst open and a tall blond came hurtling out, peals of laughter escaping him as a drenched Hope chased after him with his boomerang. He dodged and swerved to make sure he didn't get hit by the weapon as the teen looked rather determined to decapitate him. It was only a harmless prank, though maybe pouring freezing Sulyya water over the sleeping silverette hadn't been the wisest of things to do but what could Snow do? The day was wasting away and he was sure Hope would be pissed if the blond had allowed him to sleep all day.

Snow let out a loud 'oof' as Hope managed, surprisingly, to tackle him to the rocky floor; his head narrowly missed a jagged rock. More laughter bubbled up in is chest, causing him to wheeze with the effort to not let it escape lest he be alive no longer. He winced when Hope's boomerang hit him on the back, probably leaving a bruise that would hurt for a few days.

Eventually Hope got off the older man and watched him suspiciously, rubbing his forehead while doing so. When Snow had dumped the water on him, he had bolted upright in shock and fell off the couch, smacking his head as he fell.

"What in Eden's name compelled you to do that?! No, wait it was your idiotic brain." Hope muttered to himself at the end, wincing when he head throbbed. Snow chuckled and came closer, wrapping a strong arm round Hope's shoulders.

"It was just a joke! Jeez you need to lighten up," Snow shook his head and looked round the rocky terrain. "Living here in Sulyya has made you grumpy. What could we do to make you happy...? I know road trip!" Hope blinked in confusion before it dawned on him what Snow said and his face paled as he ran to catch up to the blond.

"No! No, Snow. We are not going on a road trip! I'm happy here!" Hope cried as Snow continued to pack two bags full of stuff, ignoring how every now and then Hope would take stuff out in an attempt to stop the blonds progress. It was sadly failing as Snow could carry a lot more than Hope.

"You'll love it, Hope. The open wilderness. The starlit sky! It'll be brilliant."

"That's great, tell me how it went when you come back." Snow laughed as he hauled the two bags over his shoulder and grabbed Hope round the waist, dragging the teen along with no effort.

Hope watched as his little cabin disappeared behind rocks as Snow headed towards Mah'habara. He sighed deeply and shivered when a cold breeze tickled his wet skin. He pouted while Snow couldn't see.

"Hey, Snow?"

"Yeah, kiddo."

"I'm cold." Hope grunted as he was dropped to the floor unceremoniously and glared up at the blond. At this rate Snow was going to break every bone in his body! The sound of rustling was heard as Hope rubbed his backside. He waited for a moment, wanting to see what the blond had packed and was surprised whewn he had a fluffy towl and a warm jacket thrown at him. When had the big brute packed them? Hope dried his hair and then took his sopping night shirt off, replacing it with the jacket, it was then he remembered he was only in his boxers. His face felt suddenly warm and he cleared his throat shakily.

"Uh Snow? Could I have some pants too?" Snow looked down at him for a moment and Hope was reminded of the time where Lightning gave him the same stare. It used to make him feel like diving off one the many cliff just to get away, but with Snow using it, now he felt like giggling like a girl which made his blush darken and Snow frowned.

"Are you okay? Have you got a fever?" Hope felt his heart stop as Snow reached for him and he quickly jumped to his feet while wracking his brain for something to say.

"Y-yeah! I'm fine. I just want to pants to wear before I get ill." Snow frown deepened and Hope thought that Snow had figured out why Hope's face was red but then Snow shrugged and went back to rummaging in the poorly packed bags for some trousers. Hope caught them and quickly dressed, trying to ignore the fluttering sick feeling in his chest as his heart beat two hundred miles per hour. Snow had started off again, obviously heading towards where Hope hoped Atomos wasn't sitting, waiting for them but at Snow cheery yell, he knew his prayers hadn't been answered. He willed the blush to disappear and followed Snow into Atomos.

The ride was silent besides the soothing hum of Atomos, it was a relaxing sound to hear and Hope nearly dropped off to sleep by the sound of it. He remembered back in the day when they had been travelling towards Oerba with the gang and they couldn't wait to get off Atomos, even though the Fal'Cie was too busy drilling holes to notice six freeloaders, now he never wanted to get off, somehow Hope felt safe within the Fal'Cie now.

Mayvbe it was because he had been on his own for so long and had stared at where Atomos would be stationed every evening out of his window, wondering that if he had left his little cabin would anyone notice? But then he would shake those thoughts away and carry on, besides he was just being dramatic then and now he was glad he had stayed, he had Snow for now and he couldn't be happier. He hadn't even thought about Alexander since the blond had shown up, he didn't know if it was because the blond was like the Eidolon, a solid wall, or because he had been too busy looking after said wall to have time too. Still it was nice being so busy, it was nice having someone to care for besides himself.

Hope was about to drop off to sleep when a sharp nudge woke him up and he glared at Snow who rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Sorry, foot slipped." The was a rumble and Snow lerched suddenly, nearly ending up in Hope's lap. Hope burst into giggles, patting Atomos.

"Good boy." There was another rumble, which made Snow tense and then it went back to the soothing humming. Snow huffed.

"Trust you to befriend a Fal'Cie," Snow muttered, looking at Hope accusingly. "You made him do that didn't you?" Hope snorted and kicked Snow's shin in revenge.

"Don't be stupid, Atomos did that on his own, make you left a show scuff on him." Hope said, eying the floor curiously and then burst into laughter when Snow actually lifted his feet to check there were no marks. Snow mock glared.

"That was cruel."

"It's my fault you're stupid." Hope replied with a shrug. He yelped when Snow let out a battle cry and dived for him, the blonds fingers instantly finding Hope's ribs and the teen let out a loud bout of laughter, trying to wiggle away.

"N-no stop! Snow!" Hope pushed at the blonds hands currently ticking but he might as well been trying to move Alexander in Gestalt form, he let out a wheeze, trying to catch his breath through the giggles to plead for mercy when Atomos suddenly came to a halt and rumbled loudly as if to stop them like a scolding parent.

It worked.

Hope climbed into his seat and tried to get the crinkles out of his shirt. He glanced at Snow who was watching the walls of Atomos very closely like Dysley himself was about to jump out.

"So where are we going?" He asked and shivered when Snow grinned.

"Well, I was thinking we'd do some camping on Archylte Steppe, maybe go see the Chocobo farms, then go through Vallis Media and see if our old airship is still there and then have a stroll through the Yaschas Masiff to the Paddraean Archaeopolis, maybe see if any Cie'th stones are still about. Like tthe old days."

"...Like the old days, huh." Snow gave him a look.

"Yeah! Y'know when me and you went hunting for food that one time and brought back Flan eggs by accident and nearly poisoned everyone?" Hope could help but crack a smile and nodded his head.

"Well then, I can't wait."

The strange thing was, he really couldn't..

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><p>AN: Please Review.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I do not own or make any money from this fanfiction.

Warnings: Not much really

A/N: I'm not gonna chat as not many people read the Authors notes, just Review at the end and tell me what you think.

ENJOY

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><p>=Archlyte Step=<p>

Hope watched as Snow ran from a herd of angry flans, their jelly like bodies wobbling after him as they waved their arms around trying to catch him. He chuckled to himself as Snow attempted to climb a big, tall rock formation only to find that the flans bodies stuck to rock and so they continued to chase him vertically. Hope didn't know what the blond had done to upset the herd of flans, the only thing he knew was that Snow was hunting a Gorgonisipd and then ran past Hope a couple of minutes later with flans tailing him.

And while flans weren't hard to kill when you had magic, without magic it was practically impossible. Hope rolled his eyes as Snow jumped from the rock formation, landing with a roll onto the grassy plains, the blond stood up, brushing his clothes only to freeze when something jelly like wrapped round his leg and he was flung into the air. Hope's jaw dropped as a rare white flan tossed Snow around like a toy. The silverette had to hand to Snow, the man had terrible luck. Hope jumped from his perch and calmly approached the white flan. White flans were mostly harmless being the only vegetarian of the flans specie, they were also well known for their healing properties, their white ooze being just as powerful as a X-Potion. Hope cleared his throat and stared up at the giant white flan.

"Hello," The white flan turned round, oddly hugging Snow's dizzy figure to its jelly mass like a child would a precious stuffed toy. The white flan looked down at Hope and then began to spread out, sinking into the ground so its eyes were level with Hope's.

"Can I have my friend back please?" Two large black eyes glanced at Snow who was trying to wiggle free and it let loose a gurgle and swallowed Snow inside its body. Hope scowled.

"Look I know he's lovable and everything but I really need him back. He dragged me out into this stupid wilderness and unfortunately I need him to get back home to, so give him back." Hope demanded, feeling slightly stupid for arguing with a flan but the white flan did nothing but let out another gurgle and began to slide away. Hope growled under his breath and pulled out a small, weak manadrive that had been spared in the crystalisation of Cocoon. He powered the false magic and threw a Fire at the flan. At first the flan ignored the attack and then it began to rise, getting taller and taller until it towered over Hope. Its white body bubbled, and ooze poured from its mouth as its eyes turned red, it turned to look at Hope and let out a roar this time. Hope stumbled back, feeling pretty stupid for attacking a peaceful if not slightly annoying flan. White flans were peaceful yes, but if angered turned into a formidable foe with about 2 million HP.

Hope was so screwed.

Hope continued to walk backwards until he tripped and fell, landing roughly on his back. The white flan towered over him, its great big arms swinging down to bash Hope into the ground when a strange noise began, like an engine roaring, and the white flan shuddered, eyes turning back to black as its whole body began to vibrate. The wobbling got worse and worse until the white flan let out a shriek and Hope dived for cover behind a rock just before the white flan exploded. White ooze splattered everywhere, covering everything in its path.

Hope winced as some poor Cie'th stone was covered in the stuff, feeling sorry for the poor soul that was trapped to that spot. He slowly crept out from behind rock, sidestepping what goo he could only to burst out laughing at Snow who was drenched in the stuff.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up." Snow grouched as he sludged towards Hope who was now holding his sides and had gone a little pink in the face from laughing so hard. Snow gathered a lot of the goo in his hand like a snowball and threw it, letting out a victorious shout when it hit Hope in the chest, knocking the wind out of the teen.

Hope scowled but let it go in favour of staring at the machine attached to Snow's arm.

"Where did you get an enhanced, X7ZT enhanced manadrive from?" Hope questioned, marvelling over one of the most powerful machinery ever created by man. Snow shrugged and glanced at the machine which was still whirring.

"Oh that? Uh….Serah brought it me as a present." Snow explained, sounding slightly awkward while doing so. A silence followed that was probably the most awkward silence that ever happened in the history of Pulse.

Eventually Hope cleared his throat and gave a half shrug, "So….did you find the Gorgonisipd?"

Snow grinned and began to tell Hope how he heroically defeated the Gorgonisipd.

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><p>=Vallis Media=<p>

Hope yawned, rubbing at his sleepy eyes before going back to staring at the fire. It was about 3am in the morning and Hope couldn't sleep. He was absolutely shattered yes, felt like he could sleep a week in fact but he just couldn't go to sleep. No matter how he tried to relax his muscles stayed tense and it was like his mind was going a mile a minute. Hope stared at the fire, feeling his eyes droop and just as he was about to drop off to sleep, his muscles tensed and his mind screamed that something was wrong and he was alert again, glancing round suspiciously at the dark shadows of the night. This was ridiculous! They were in the old ruins of the airship that they had took to Pulse when they had been l'Cie. Surprising it was still mostly intact and with some muscle from Snow it was like a secure hut that would protect them from the beasts of the night so he had nothing to worry about there. Besides there weren't many monsters in the area anyway, Vallis Media had always been like a reprieve from the monsters.

'This is stupid.' Hope thought as he had the same reaction again just as he was about to drop off to sleep. He picked up the thin metal pole and poked the fire with it a few times. He felt frustration well up inside him, he just wanted to sleep damnit! He poked at the fire more viciously ignoring how the metal was beginning to warm up from the fire. He wandered away in his thoughts and it was only when he hissed at the pain in his hand that he had realised the metal pole was now scorching hot and he dropped it quickly and gripped his burnt hand to his chest, feeling tears in his eyes from pain and tiredness.

"Damnit!" Hope seethed, forgetting that Snow was there with him. He jumped out of his skin when a big warm hand landed on his shoulder.

"Hope? What are you doing- what happened to you hand?!" Snow questioned his voice sleepy at first until he saw the vicious burn appearing on Hope's pale skin and then it became worried. Hope couldn't help but flush in embarrassment.

"I uh burnt it on the metal pole." He muttered, feeling his face darken at Snow incredulous gaze. Snow stared for a couple of minutes until he realised that he should probably get a potion or even some of that white ooze that Hope demanded they take with them. Snow brought Hope to his feet and took the teen over to the sleeping area they had made, noticing how Hope's covers were in a tangled mess. Hope sat on Snows sheets as the blond went off to get the supplies they needed to heal his hand.

"Snow, bring some of the White flan ooze, it'll stop the stinging when you apply the potion." Hope advised, feeling glad that he had read all those medical tablets found in one of the ruined cities that littered Pulse. Snow came back a few minutes later and dropped the stuff by Hope, sitting on the hard ground by his bed. He gently took Hope's hand and winced internally at the wound; it had blistered and was oozing clear liquid. He noticed that Hope could barely straighten his fingers without wincing and could tell that the teen was now beginning to feel the pain.

"Ok, talk me through what I need to do Hope. I was useless as a medic remember?" Snow joked, watching as Hope's lips twitched in a smile before he grimaced.

"Yeah, your too big for the delicate work, you're built like a sentinel, built to take hits." Hope joked back, his voice wavering as his hand began to pulse with pain. "Uh, first you have to clean the burn with cool water." Snow nodded, popping open a sterile water pack and with no finesse poured the cold water over Hope's hand, apologising when Hope jolted, hissing through his teeth.

"Ok, Hope what's next?"

"T-the white ooze, put it on the afflicted area, it is an anti-bacterial agent as well as freezing component which will keep the wound cold." Snow nodded his head, noticing how Hope sounded like he was repeating words from a text book. He opened the jar and went to dip his fingers in the ooze when he realised he hadn't washed his hand. He looked at Hope who had begun shivering.

"Hope, I need to wash my hands-"

"N-no, just slather your hands in the ooze, it'll be alright…..j-just put in on." Hope said, his voice now a mere whisper and Snow could see his chest rising rapidly as the pain obviously worsened. Snow dug his fingers into the jar, getting a big handful of the ooze and slathered both his hand thoroughly and then went for more and began, as gently as possible, treat the wound on Hope's hand. He gently massaged the burnt fingers, apologising when he had to straighten them out some to get the ooze into every crevice, next came the large open blister on Hope's palm. He took some more out the jar and put it straight on the wound, feeling his heart break when Hope cried out and began to sob, and had to hold to the teens wrist tightly as he massaged the ooze into the open blister so Hope couldn't yank his hand away. The ooze seemed to be doing its stuff however, Hope sobs died down to hiccups and Snow hands felt numb and strangely cool.

"Now what Hope?" He asked, unable to stop himself from stroking back a lock of silver hair from Hope's face with a free hand while the other gripped Hope's wrist in a tight hold. Hope blinked away some tears and looked at his hand.

"You need a bowl or something and then you need to pour a potion into it and bathe bandages in the potion until the bandages are soaked." Snow nodded, following directions after letting go of the wounded hand. A couple of minutes later he came back with the potion soaked bandages and began to as gently as possible wrap the material round Hope's hand. He was aware that Hope's hand would be useless for a few days as there weren't enough bandages to wrap each finger individually. He ignored Hope's whimper as he straightened out each finger fully and wrapped them in bandages. Once he tied off the bandages he took another long look at Hope; the teen was sweating and shivering at the same time, his face was extremely pale and had tear stains. Hope's bottom lip was split where he had bitten through to hold back noises of pain.

He looked awful.

Snow wiped his hands on a clean cloth to rid his hands of some of the ooze and then proceeded to gather Hope in a tight hug. Trying to sooth the teen the best he could and by the way Hope seemed to melt into the embrace, the teen needed it.

"You gonna tell me how you burnt your hand?" He asked as he shuffled round until they were both lying down, Hope still securely in his arms.

"I couldn't sleep, no matter how many times I got close to falling asleep, just couldn't. So I poked the fire in frustration and then I just got caught up in my thoughts and forgot about the pole…" Hope explained, and Snow could hear the exhaustion in the teen's voice.

"Why didn't you just wake me up Hope?" Snow inquired, absently running a hand through Hope's hair. He felt the teen shrug and rolled his eyes.

"Well from now on, if you can't sleep, you wake me up ok? Your hero will always be here…. Hope?" Snow pulled away slightly and looked down at Hope only to find the silverette fast asleep, his uninjured hand clutched tightly in Snow's vest and looked like it was letting go anytime soon.

Snow chuckled to himself and got comfy, it looked like he'd be there for some time.

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><p>AN: and yeah, so review and tell me what you think ^^


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